Stenciling apparatus



May 26, 1925.

W. 'PRINGLE STENCILING APPARATUS 5 Sheet s Sheet 1 I Filed April 1, 1924 gnumntov 3 m5 Wm my m m mm mm AN bk 7 Jw Wm mm N Nb 4 MAN alboznug w.- PRING'LE STENCILING APP ARATI J Eiled April 1, 1924 May 26, 1925.

May 26, 1925. 1,538,951

w. PRINGLE STENCILING APPARATUS Filed April 1, 1924 5 Sheets-Sheet s SIM vented;

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Prz'ayle W. PRING LE STENCILING APPARATUS May 26 Filed April 1. 1924 5 sheets sheet 4 v May 26, 1925. 1,538,951

W. PRINGLE v STENCILING APPARATUS Filed April 1, 1924 5 Sheets-"Sheet 5 enema ma 2c; 1925.

UNITED". STA

winnmn rnrnenn; or memos HILL, NEW YORK.

- Application filed April 1,

To all whom it may cancer-m.

Be it known that I, WILLIAM PRINGLE, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Richmond Hill, New York city, in the county of Queens and State of New- York, have invented certain new and use ful Improvem'entsdn Stenciling Apparatus,

of which the following is aspecification.

My invention relates to stenciling apparatu's" and particularly to stencilin apparatus in which fluids are applied to t e work under pressure. *The invention' is particularly adapted for production of mu ti-color work, but is capable of use in any process Where fluid is applied to work under pressure. v

'One of the typical and most important uses of multi-color work is in the production of greeting cards. These cards may be colored either by hand or by machine al though hand coloring is too laborious and expensive for ordinary conditions. For this reason thebulk of such cards are 001- ored by machine.

Machine coloring, as heretofore practiced, has also been found unsatisfactory incertain important respects. Under the usual machine processes, the color work presents an interior appearance, and is considerably more expensive of a'pphcatmn than might be desired.

The hand method is performed by means of an air brush, the color being directed to the card either througha stencil or with out such. device. Whether a stencil is em ployed or not, costs under this process are inordinately'high. When no stencil is used an unusually skilled operator or artist is required an the waste of color and stock will always be excessive. With'a stencil the finished product theoretically shouldbe of as good appearance as if no stencil were a used, and more uniform, because of the fixed 'design. This of course assumes that the stencil design remains unchanged and is uniformly adhered. to.- In actual practice, however, this is not the case. Few perfeet... reproductions are obtained stock is wasted. It has been found; that these diiiicultiesarise from the tendency of the color to spread on the card beneath the stencil,- which. heretofore has always been placed on top of the card. A certain portion of the spreading color adheres to of the stencil will result in but will be blown onto and much.

'WQIk can be accurately and-- 'duced :at

APPARATUS.

1924. Serial No. 703,506.

- the under side of the stencil and around 65 the edges'of the stencil apertures. If the. color remains wet, the card will become smeared; if it dries immediately it will 0 course remain on the stencil.' Repeated use the stencil be.- ing so caked with the color as to destroy the sharp lines formed by the edges of'the cut-out design, and prevent the stencil from hearing firmly and evenly upon the card. When this occurs the ap lication of color will not be confined to t e stencil design,

the card beyond the outlinesof the design, through the spaces thus formed between the-card and stencil.

A'ragged, uneven, line of color will result. i

The finished cars are often smeared and otherwise unsatisfactory in appearance and are not infrequently spoiled. More satisfactoryresults are obtained by other methods. a Cards, articles, or other work may be colored mechanically by die-stamping or printing upon presses adapted for color work. each of these methods the cost of man-- B u1ii1ctureis very high. The waste of stock 8,

also bear's much too high a ratio to theproperly finished product and many opera-- tions are necessary to obtain a fair-range of color. By these mechanical rocesses, also, a relatively narrow range 0 ,color is as available ."and "the appear'ancesofthe work. is too sharply mechanical, even 'in'the most ex ensive work.

y either the hand or mechanical processes mentioned only flat, smooth surfaces can be"-well, colored, as ridges-and hollows do not take the colorwith uniformity.

. By employing the stenciling'machine and. the color-applying process which constitute my invention, greatly improved results are,

obtained. Eifects'can be produced that can only be equalled by the most expensive and laborious hand methods. Moreover,'. by 4 means of m invention color can be uni-" formly applied to both flat and-raised sur- 10C faces on either rou h or smooth work.

The primary ob ect. of my invention is the provision of, means by which stencil properly roa minimum expenditure of time, 10: labor, and-materials. v

' A further object is the provision of means ,whereby practically perfect multi-color air brush and stencil so arrangedas to eliminate wastage of color and stock and effect quantity production of such Work in tions of the same or different colors.

uniform and perfect condition.

A still further object is the provision of means to direct the color upwardly to the cardor other Work and through a stencil plate, the work being held face downward on the upper side of the stencil. By this arrangement, with theuse of very thin but rigid stencils, exceedingly accurate line} work is obtained because all of the color which strikes the stencil but does not pass through the cut-out design will tend to gather on the lower side of the stencil, re,- moved from possible contact with the face of the work. With this arrangement, also, a heavy accumulation of color -on the under surface of the stencil will not affect the work, since the color will either drip from the stencil toward the source of color or dry'upon. the under surface of the stencil without many way affecting the lines of the design or the fixed relation of the work and stencil.

In providing means to produce the abovestated results I also contemplate as one of the objects of the invention the provlsion of means for effectively maintaining the card or other work firmly and surely in its proper position upon the stencil. By this means no color is permitted to gather upon or reach the side of the stencil upon which the card bears. Because of the means thus provided the color cannot pass the upper edge of the stencil outline. Furthermore, as previously explained, any excess of color tends to fall away from the stencil rather than seep between the stencil and the work.

By way of further explanation of the invention which I'have devised, another of its main objectsmay be described as the provision of means for spraying color upwardly upon the card or other work through the stencil plate, such means comprising one or more vertically or substantially vertically positioned air brushes placed below the stencil. By the use of an air brush instead of a positive impression printing member a.-gradual'fading of color from one portion of the card to another may be obtained.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a machine whereby color can e applied'to the cards by'a step by step process, that is, the cards may be carried by machine by intermittent movements.

portion of the design may thus be colored a moving -member and passed through the One over. one stencil and other portions over other stencils at later stages of the operation of the machine, all without readjust- 'ment of the position of the card;

Another object of the invention is to provide a machine which is so designed that a plurality of air brushes may be arranged under each stencil so that the various portions of the design may be colored with a wide range of either heavy or light applica- A still further object is to so construct the machine that the application of color from each brush may be readily adjusted by theoperator independently of the other air brushes.

A still further object is to so support the stencil that it will be readily adjustable so that its design will appear on the work or card in perfect alignment with the designs placed on the card by the other stencils.

This permits the position of the design on the card to be readily changed and maintained on succeedin cards, all without adjustment of the individual cards.

The machine comprises, broadly, a working table or platform with a conveyor belt passing along one side thereof in step-bystep orintermittent movements. Blank cards or, other work to be colored by the machine are attached to the belt by clips while the belt is temporarily stationary,

When the driving mechanism next moves the belt the card will be. advanced to a position over the first stencil plate. A spring arm, operated by a cam timed to the movementpf the belt, will move downwardly to pressthe card firmly against the upper side of the stencil plate and the downward movement of .the arm will also actuate the valves of air brushes'vertically positioned below the stencil plate to spray color upon the card through the openings in the stencil. By movement of the cam, after a short interval the arm will be raised, releasing the card from the stencil plate and shutting off the air brushes The conveyor beltwill l-lO then carry the card to the next stencil plate where the former operation will be repeated.

-on the line 22 of Figure 1.-

Figure 3 is a top plan view of -a section of the conveyor belt used in the machine.

Figure 4 is a detail view' showing a side elevation of the conveyor chain.

Figure 5- is a sectional viewtaken on the line 55 of Figure 3.

Figure 6 is a side elevation, partly broken I away, of the conveyor chain drive wheel."

Figure 7 is a view taken on the line 7-7 of Figure 6, showing the conveyor chain andcasing in sectionf Figure 8 is a detail plan iriew showing the stencil frame a nd s tenci l frame supporting gallery. m

Figure 9 is a sectional view taken on the line 9.9 of Figure 8. Figure 10 is a detail view, partly in sec tion, showing the manner in which the air brushes are mounted in the machine.

Figure 11 is a detail perspective. view showing the air brush mounting.

Figure 12 is a viewof a stencil plate reinforced by a supporting plate. 1

Figure 13 is a vertical sectional viewof a modified and hand operated form of the machine. v

Figure 14 is a front elevation of the machine shown in Figure 13, and, Y Figure 15 is a top plan view of the modified form of machine.

Referring to Figures 1 to 12, inclusive, of the drawings, wherein similar numerals refer to like parts throughout the several views, the numeral 20 designates the working table or platform of the machine. Upon the table are provided a number-of preferably rectangular stencil frame supporting gal-'- leries 21, 22, .23 and 24 each provided with an inwardly extending flange 25 about its lower edge for supporting a stencil frame 26 carrying a stencil plate 27. Means for horizontally adjusting the position of the stencil frame .26 are provided in hand screws 28, carried in the downwardly extending side walls 29 of the galleries. Asis shown in Fi ure 8, one of these hand screws is placed adjacent each corner of the supportmg galleries. By operating these screws in pairs the stencil frame 26-may be shifted upon flan e 25 as desired so that the osition of t e designplaced on the .car by each stencil be adjustedrelatively" to the position of the designs ofv the other stencils. Thescrews 28 may be reached for operation through hand holes 30 between the stencil galleries, the hand holes being normally closed by cover plates 31. w

The stencil plates 27 are preferably formed of very thin sheet tool steel or other ma terialsuitable for stencils and the stencil designs, may be formed or cut out in any desired manner. When necessary, a supporting blank of brass or other suitable material may be cemented or otherwise fixed to the under side of the stencil 27, to brace it and prevent it from bending. A plate of this type is indicated by the numeral 32 and, as shown in-Figure 12, ithasapertures 33'therein aligned with the cut-out portions of the stencil 27 and much larger than the latter openings. The number of designs included in a stencil may of course be varied according ,to' the size of the work upon which the design is to be. placed. In postcard Work it will be found most economical to have four designs to a stencil, positioned as shown by the stencil 27 of Fi ure 8.

- The air brushes 34- with which the machine is equipped maybe of the usual type and are preferably supported or arranged beneath the stencil plates 27 and galleries 21, 22, 23 and 24 in the manner illustrated in Figures 10 and 11 and shown in 'connecti-on with the gallery 24 in Figurel. As shown in these vie'ws, longitudinal bars are suitably supported beneath the working table or platform 20' and each bar is provided with two pairs of longitudinal slots 36 adapted to receive the hand screws 37 carried on the underside and at one end of the.

transverse-slide blocks 38. The slide blocks '38 are longitudinally slotted as shown at 39 and a slot 40 is out through one side 41 of the. block. carrying the air brushes 34 are mounted on the slide blocks 38, each block having a Brush supporting blocks 42' square depending lug'43 on its lower edge to engage the longitudinal slot 39 of the slide. block 38. Each brush block 42-may be clamped in position u on its slide block 38 by a wing nut 44 on a It 45 whiclrextends through the side slot 40 into lug 43. It will be seen that the position of the :air brushes 34 may be changed relatively to the stencil 27 by adjusting the slide block 38 on bar 35'or the brush block 42 on slide block 38. Since. either -of these adjustments may be employed separately or combined with the other, the arrangement provides. a ready horizontal adjustment of the air brushes so that they will project a stream of color upon any desiredportion of the stencil and card. The brushes are held in adjusted position by tightening the removable hand screws 37 and wing nuts 44. An desired number of air lace under each stencil? Ordinarilytwelve rushesto a stencil, six on each side of bar 35 will be found convenient. This arrangement renders possible a wide range and j brushes may be the spray from the brushes, a sleeve such as 77 may be placed over the upper portion of The air by which the brushes are actuated is supplied through flexible tubes attached to a manifold- 46 which communicates Wltll'fl. compressed air tank 47. The color forthe brushes is Obtained from tanks or jars placed at the back of the machine (Figure 1) or in any other convenient location, and connected to the brushes by suitable tubing 49. The color supplied to each brush may be changed at will by attaching the flexible color supply tube 49 of any of the brushes to the desired tank of ink or color. The air brushes 34 arecontrolled through Bowdoin wires 50 ina manner hereinafter described.

The apparatus may be operated either with or without a conveyor belt 51, for conveying the cards to be colored from one stencil to another. The structure of this belt is shown in detail in Figures 3, 4-and 5. It comprises relatively. narrow plates 52 held together ,inbelt formation by flexible steel bands 53 passed through slots 54 at each end of the plates, as particularly il-- l-ustratedin-.-Figure 5. 3-

serted from the lower'side of the plates.

The plates 52 are held on' the bands 53 by set screws 55 in- The lower side edges of the plates are beveled as shown in Figure 4 so that the belt as a whole will have the necessary flexibility. I v

In the preferred form of my invention the belt 51 extends along the front of the working table 20 and is supported at the right hand or feed side of the machine (Figurel) by an idler drum, not shown. At the other end of the table the belt is supported on idler drums 56 and 57 so mounted on a shaft 58 that each drum is under one edge of the belt, as shown in Figure 7. The belt is further supported 7 throughout its length by pins 59 projecting from each end of the plates 52 and slidably inserted in endless grooves 60 in the casing members 61 at each side of the belt 51. Intermittent. motion is imparted to conveyor belt 51 by a driving drum 62 fixed to the so spaced oil the belt that the space between shaft 58 between the idler drums 56 and 57. -The driving drum has upon itspe; riphery a tooth 63 which engages teeth 64 'on the under side of the belt 51', as shown in "Figure 6. These teeth 64 are preferably them is equal to one-half the circumference of the drum 62. The rotation of the driving drum 62 will move the belt 51 intermittently by reason of the fact that tooth 63 will only be in engagement with a tooth 64 on thebelt during one-half of the rotation of the drum 62. As shown in Figure 6, a tooth 64 on the belt. will always stop as is used" in presses.

approximately directly above the axis of the driving drum 62 and a subsequent rotation of the" drum will cause its tooth 63 on the'belt. Thus thebelt- 51 and the. cards carried thereby will be moved ':forward to engage and move with it thisltooth 64 about the idler drums 56 and 57 a distance tionary until the next tooth 64 is engaged by the continued movement of the drum 62. This interval will be sufficient to permit the operator to clamp the cards to be colored upon the belt and enable the air brushes to be actuated.

The particular arrangement of teeth described above has been found to produce a st'epby step movement of the belt that is.

.well suited to the operation of the apparatus, but the distance between these teeth and the size of the drum may of course be varied to produce movement of the belt at longer or shorter intervals.

A card G is shown in Figure 1 mounted on the belt. 51 by means of devices which are illustrated in detail in Figures 3, 4 and 5. These holding devices are attached to the belt plates 52. Each plate has a plurality of spaced threaded sockets 79 adapted to receive a set screw 82 which passes through suitable openings in clips 80' and 81 and secures the clips to the inner edge of the belt plate; The clip 80 has a lower flat jaw 83;

and an upper spring jaw 84 with a slot to receive the screw 82. The clip 81 has a lower flat jaw '99 and an adjustable stop arm 85 hearing thereon. Sets ofthese clips, comprising a pair of clips 80 and a single clip 81, are attached to the belt51 at intervals, the distance between adjacent sets being equal to the distance between stencil plates 27. \Vhen in use, the outer edge of a card 0 will be held by the jaws 83 and 84 of the clips 80 while the forward edge of the card will bear against the stop arm 85 of the clip 81. The position of the clips on each plate 52 may be varied at will by inserting the set screws 82 in the appropriate sockets 79.

The use of these clips obviates the necessity of a pin adjustment for the cards suc i The cards C will be placed in the clips 80 and 81 while the belt is stationary. The operator takes a card C from the pile at the feed end 86 of the machine workingtable and inserts its edge in the clips 80 with its side edge bearing. a ainst the stop arm 85. In the operation 0 the apparatus this is done the instant that each successive set of clips stopsbefore the pile at end 86. The

clips are uniformlyspacedalong the belt so that each of the cards C will be properly positioned over thestencils 27 as it is successively stoppedat the respective galleries 21, 22, 23 and 24.1 Whenthe cards have passed on from the gallery 24 they will next stop at thereleasing mechanism. This comprises a pivotedarm or lever 87 carrying a loose shaft 88at its outer end. Friction rollers 89 are carried on the shaft and the lever 87 is so geared to the driving mechanism of the apparatus that it will be lowered when a, card C stops under its outer end, The

card will be gripped and firmly held between the rollers 89 and a pad 90. When the belt 51 starts to move again the card willbepulled from the clips 80 and 81. Upon release of the card, the lever 87 will be raised, as willbe later described, so as to be in readiness to gri the next card. The conveyor belt passes through openings 92 provided for this purpose in table 20, these openings being made sufiiciently large to permit the passage of the clips 80 and 81 attached to the belt.

The shaft 58 to which the belt driving V drum 62 is fixed is geared to a motor 65 bv suitable reduction gearing. A cam shaft 66 geared to shaft 58 carries a series of earns 67 against which bear arms 74, carried by a bar 68, by means of which actuation of the air brushes is controlled. As previously stated, a group of air brushes 34:- are located beneath each stencil plate 27. A Bowdoin Wire extends from each brush and has fixed to its upper end the usual plunger-'69, normally held in an elevated position by a coil spring 70. The plungers 69 are carried in a terminal plate 71'extending along the working table of the machine, the plungers associated with each group of brushes being located adjacent one another in the terminal plate 71. The brush controlling plungers project upwardly through the working ta ble into close proximity to bar 68. Thelatter is pivoted in journals 72 at its rear edge and, asis shown in Figure 1, extends along the top of the working table behind the stencil galleries 21, 22, 23, and 24;. Bar 68 carries a series of adjusting screws 73, one for eachof the plungers 69. The screws 73 extend through the bar, each screw being positioned directly above a plunger 69. Spring arms 76 extend forwardly from the brush operating bar 68 over each of the stencil plates 27 and serve to hold the cards in position by pressing the cards downward- 1y against the stencil plates. Extending rearwardly from the bar 68 between eac pair of journals 72 isthe arm 74 with its end 75 bent downwardly to bear against the cam 67. The plungers 69 are normally held against the lower ends of the adjustin screws 73 by means of the springs 70. single bar 68 may be employed, but it is stop opposite the feeding 67 toinsure smooth operation. y In the operation of the apparatus the rotation of the shaft 58 will intermittently move the belt driving drum 62 and will also effect the rotation of the cams gearedto the shaft. The cams 67 are so positioned upon the shaft 66 that when the tooth 63 on the drivingtdrum 62 has moved the .belt for ward one step (stencil plate) and disengaged the tooth on the belt so that the belt will be stationary, the-highest point on the cams 67 will come underthe lower ends 75 of the bars 74 and raise the latter. The consequent tilting of bar 68 on its journals 72 causes the adjusting screws 73 to depress the Bowdoin wire plungers 69 and actuate the air brushes 34 to 'sprav color upon the cards held upon the stencil plates 27. The spring arms 76. which aid in holding the cards in position are made to depend slightly from the plane of the bar 68 so that they will contact with the cards C over the stencil plates before the plungers 69 are actuated. This will insure against any color be-.

ing sprayed while the cards are loose on the stencils. The parts of the apparatus are so arranged and timed that the coloring of the cards will be completed by the time the cam,

in'its continued; rotation, permits the end 75 of arm 74 to drop;and as. soon as the 1 bar 68 is thus elevated the driving drum under the rollers 89 is held bythem until after the belt 51 hasjstarted, so that the card a will be released from the clips on the belt. In the operation of the apparatus shown in Figures 1 to 12, inclusive, the stencil plates 27, by means of which the series of designs are to be placed .on the-cards, are placed in the respective stencil frames 26 and the latter properly adjusted. This adjustment may best be made after a short preliminary operation of thejmachine, to bring the successive portions of the design into accurate alignment. The clips 80 and 81 will also be placed on the belt 51 as desired, each set of clips being so, spaced that they will, in their. passage over the table,

space 86, the. gal leries 21, 22,23, and 24 and the release lever 87 in succession. When the apparatus is be-,

ling operated, the operator will place a. card C. in the clips 80 and 81 on the belt each time the belt stops. The newly inserted cards car,- ried along with the belt by the operation of the belt driving drum 62, will first stop over the stencil plate 27 in gallery 21. The air brush operating bar 68 will immediately be swung downward by the rotation of cams 67, the movement of bar 68 first causing card C to be clamped-down upon the stencil 27 and subsequently effecting the actuation of the air brushes 34 to spray the color upon the under side or face ofthe card C. Con-- tinued rotation of the cam 67 will permit the bar 68 to rise, thus cutting ofi the air brushes 34 and releasing the card from the stencil plate; Upon completion of this operation the drum 62 will have rotated sufficiently to again move thebelt 51, which will carry the card to the-next gallery 22,

where it will be stopped and colored with another portion of the design as the result of a second operation of the bar 68. This will continue until the card has passed over each stencil in turn, when it will next stop under the releasing lever .87 and there be taken from the belt.

It will be understood that the operator atthe feed end 86 of the table has placed a card in the clips onthe belt each time the belt has stopped, so that-a card C will be over each stencil plate each time the belt 51 stops. In'this way four cards C may be colored simultaneously with the apparatus shown. The number of cards to be colored at one time will of course depend upon the number of stencils used. In operation it will-be advisable to place a sheet of paper over the uncovered stencils until all are covered by cards C so that color will not spray through the stencils and over the working tabl e The amount'of color to be sprayed by a given air brush 34 can be easily regulated by adjusting the screw 73 which normally contacts with the plunger 69 of the air brush. If the screw is raisedits downward movement will of course exert less pressure upon the plunger and will cause a lighter stream of color to be ejected by the brush, while if the screw is lower the brush will throw a correspondingly heavier stream. One color may be sprayed by any number or all of the brushes of a group or each may eject a different color, just as desired. In the latter case it will be seen that fortyeight difi'erent colors may be placed on the. cards in one run through the apparatus is -broadly similar to the apparatus shown in the preceding figures, the only differences in structure being such as 'to permit this device to be operated by hand instead of by power as in the other form of the invention.

The hand operated device is somewhat similar to .a table and comprises a working platform 120 to which is pivotally connected a gallery 121 by means of a hinge 192 at the rear edge of the gallery. A stencil plate frame 26 carrying a stencil 27 is adjustably carried by gallery 121 and may be adjustably positioned therein by hand screws 28. y

The 'air brushes 34 are mounted beneath thestencil plate. 27 and are connected to the color tanks and air tank in a manner similar to that employed in the apparatus illustrated in Figures 1, to 12, inclusive.

In the device illustrated in.Figures 13, 14 and 15 the air brush controlling wires 50 lead to a bar 71 below the front edge of the pivoted gallery 121. The plungers 69 at the upper ends of the wires 50 project through openings in the bar into contact with'the lower side of the pivoted gallery. The springs which normally hold the plungers 69 in' elevated position are sufliciently. strong to support the gallery 121 in its raised position. v

In the operation of the device, when the operator,after having laced a card to be colored upon the stenc l 27, depresses the outer edge of the pivoted gallery 121, the plungers 69 will be depressedand the air brushes 34 actuated to spray color on the card. The'amount of 'color sprayed by the brushes will of course depend upon the length of time the gallery 121 is held depressed, as the machine is not automatic in this respect. The construction and operation of the air brushes and the manner of adjustment of these and other parts of the device will "be clear from the description given of the apparatus of Figures 1 to 12.

In both of the forms of my invention disclosed herein, the stencils are placed in a normally inverted position with respect to the cards or other work to, be colored, i. e'.,

beneath instead of above the cards, and the, color or other fluid is sprayed upon the cards from below. As prevlously ex ilained,

this method insures a uniform and accurate coloring of greeting cards or other cards and articles, and prevents color from spreading or being smeared upon the face of the article being colored.

The appearance of the 'stenciled work will compare most favorably with hand work and a much wider range of color and shading can be obtained at a much more reasonable cost.

I claim:

1. A stenciling apparatus comprising :.1 substantially horizontal stencil, an air brush beneath the stencil for spraying fluid upwardly upon the under side thereof, and means for actuating the air brush.

2. A stenciling apparatus comprising a substantially horizontal stencil, an airbrush beneath the stencil for applying fluid to the underside thereof, means for positioning articles upon said stencil, and

means for actuating said air brush in accordance withthe operation of said p0si-' tioning means. l I

3. A stenciling apparatus comprising a substantially horizontal stencil, an air brush beneath the stencil, and means for moving articles over the stencil and for actuating the air brush when an article is aligned I with the stencil.

.4. 1A 'steama 'fa ipaiatus f comprising v stencil, an air brush beneath the stencil to apply. colorfto the under side thereof, conveyor means for depositing articles upon the stencil and means synchronous with the conveyor'means for actuating the air brush when an article is deposited on the stencil; I 5.A stenciling apparatus comprising a stencil, colorprojecting means beneath the stencil, an intermittentlyactuated conveyor for positioning articles on the stencil and means for actuating the color pro ectmg means while the article is positioned on the stencil.

6. A stenciling apparatus comprising a stencil, color projecting means beneath the stencil, means for positioning cards upon the stencil, and means for actuating the color projecting means, said positioning means and color pro ecting actuating means being synchronized for actuation of the projec'ting means when the card is positioned. 7. A stenciling apparatus comprising a stencil, color projecting means beneath the stencil, means to positioncards on the stenoil and means to alternately actuate the positioning and color projecting means whereby the latter will be actuated when the card is positioned. a

8. A'stenciling apparatus comprising a plurality of. stencils,color projecting means beneath the stencils, conve or means; for successively positioning car s upon the respective stencils, means for alternately actuating the conveyor means and .color projecting means whereby the latter will be actuated when the cards are positioned on the stencils.

9. A stenciling apparatus comprising a substantially horizontal support having an opening therein, a stencil on said support in stencil, a clamping member adapted to be and hold the work upon the alignment with said opening, means forprojecting fluid upon the lower side of the moved into operative position to engage the stencil andto actuate the uid projectnfpper face of V operating said clamping member.

10. A stenciling apparatus comprising a ing means, and means for intermittently substantially horizontal support having a plurality of openings therein,. stencils on said support in alignment with said openings, means beneath thestencils for projecting fluid upon the under sideof said stencils, conveyor means for successively positioning articles upon the upper surface of the respective stencils, a pivoted member adapted to be moved into operative posit-ion to engage and hold the articles positioned upon said stencils and to actuate the fluid projectingmeans and means for intermittently operating the conveyor means and ing the conveyor means and color 'projecting means whereby the latter will be actuated when the cards are aligned with the stencils.

-13. A stenciling apparatus comprising a stencil, fluid projecting means beneath the stencil, means for positioning articles on the stencil, and means controlled by the positioning means for actuating the fluid projecting means. 5 Y v 14.-A stenciling apparatus comprising. a stencil, fluid projecting means beneath the stencil, an intermittently actuated'conveyor for positioning articles on the stencil, and

means controlled by the positioning of. an

article on thestencil for actuating the fluid projecting means.

15. A stenciling apparatus comprising a stencil, an air brush beneath the stencil for applying fluid -to the underside thereof, means to position articles on the stencil, and means controlled by the means for actuating the air brush.

16. A stenciling apparatus comprising a stencil, means for projecting fluid upon the lower'side of the stencil, a'movable member adapted to engage and hold an article upon theiupper side of the stencil and to actuate the fluidprojecting means, and means for operating the movablemember.

. 17. A stenciling app'aratus'comprising a stencil, a support'beneath the stencil, said support-having a plurality of apertures to admit fluid to different portions of the stenpositioning cil, an air brush beneath the support for applying fluid to the under side thereof, and means for actuating the air brush.

18. ,A stenciling apparatus comprising a stencil, a support beneath the stencil, said support having a plurality of apertures to admit fluid to different portions of the stencil, a plurality of air brushes each adapted to project fluid through one .of the apertures of the support, and means for actuating the air brushes.

19. A stenciling apparatus comprising a stencil, an air brush beneath the stencil for applying'fiuid to the under side thereof, means for actuating the air brush, and means associated with the air brush. for directing the fluid therefrom to a predetermined portion of the stencil.

20. A stenciling apparatus comprising a substantially horizontal stencil, a plurality of air brushes beneath the stencil for applying fluids to the under side thereof, means for actuating the air brushes, and means:

for confining the area of application of the fluids applied by the respective brushes.

21. A stenciling apparatus comprising a stencil, an air brush beneath thestencil for applying fluid to the under side thereof,

means foractuating the airbrush, means for adjusting the position of the' air brush relative to the stencil, and a flexible tube 1 around the. upper part of the air brush,

whereby fluid from the air brush may be directed to any desired portion of the stencil.

a pre etermined portion of the surface upon which they are projected, and preventing the application of the confined sprays to the surface at selected points.

24. A stenciling apparatus comprising a substantially "horizontal stationary stencil, an airbrush beneath said stencil for applying fluid to the under side thereof, and means for actuating the air brush.

25. A stenciling apparatus comprising a substantially horizontal support having an opening therein, a stencil on said support in alignment with said opening, an air brush for spraying fluid upwardly upon the under side of the stencil, and means for controlling the actuation of the air brush.-

- WILLIAM PRINGLE. 

